Visitor Law and Inspection Zones – awakening of the Swedes

Open your heart to immigrants – the former Swedish Prime Minister proclaimed mass acceptance in his summer program speech exactly ten years ago. Since then, hundreds of thousands of migrants have arrived in the Scandinavian country, bringing not prosperity, but the total failure of integration, escalating social tensions, skyrocketing social security expenses, and a rampant wave of crime. The right-wing Stockholm government has gradually started tightening its migration policy in the past few months.

On Tuesday, Danish authorities charged three Swedish citizens, two men and one woman, with attempted murder and possession of a hand grenade after an explosion in a Copenhagen convenience store. Shortly after, numerous Swedish citizens were arrested in Denmark for committing violent crimes, and the explosion was the fourth incident involving Swedish nationals within a week.

In recent years, the violent activities of immigrant-background gangs in Sweden have taken on massive proportions, to the point where their actions extend beyond borders. Norway also fears that the violence will spread there, and there are increasing calls to tighten control along the Swedish border. According to authorities, Swedish organized criminal gangs are now present in all twelve police districts in Norway.

Both social democratic governments in Sweden have promised to curb the daily showdowns, shootings, stabbings, and arson attacks, as well as bring the gangs to their knees. While the left created a police group that chats with young gang members over pizza to manage the escalating violence, the center-right Kristersson government has taken steps to address both the roots of the problem and alleviate the symptoms.

A decade of migrant influx

Exactly ten years ago, in August 2014, the then center-right Prime Minister delivered the speech that laid the foundation for the policy that turned Sweden into a country of unlimited acceptance in the months following the erupting migration crisis. Moderate Party’s Frederik Reinfeldt, known for his speech “Open your heart,” urged the Swedish people to prepare for a flood of migrants and welcome the needy who would participate in building Sweden.

Since then, it has become apparent to a significant portion of Swedes that not only do the mass-arrived migrants not participate in sharing the burden, but they also pose a significant burden on the budget and taxpayers’ wallets, with some of them representing a serious threat and direct danger to the majority society.

Since then, the Moderate Party has made a huge turn in the migration issue. Since Ulf Kristersson became Prime Minister two years ago, he has been gradually tightening with his coalition partners and the Sweden Democrats who support the cabinet from outside – facing no small opposition at home and abroad.

Strict measures

Their main commitment is to curb gangs with a migration background. This spring, they introduced a measure package called the visitation zone, inspired by Denmark, which allows the police to temporarily designate security areas where citizens and vehicles can be searched randomly without suspicion of a specific crime.

The zones aim to prevent serious violent crimes in the so-called “band environment” and alleviate acute conflicts. They have also started tightening penalty rates, especially noticeable in the case of juveniles.

There is a trend where younger and younger gang members commit more serious crimes, including murders carried out with particular cruelty. While in Denmark, 15 to 17-year-olds who commit murder can be sentenced to life imprisonment, in Sweden, juvenile offenders are merely placed in closed juvenile care.

Stockholm has also declared war on newly arriving migrants. According to the 2022 coalition agreement, Sweden reduced its ambition regarding quota refugees from five thousand per year to nine hundred. The result is already evident, as Stockholm only accepted 541 quota refugees last year. The government also plans to tighten family reunification: so far, the number of migrants coming to the country has exponentially increased because family members identified as those with residence permits could also immigrate.

In the future, DNA testing would be required to prove true kinship, and work obligations would be imposed on working-age individuals.

In Sweden, the presence of illegal migrants who are completely out of the authorities’ sight and support themselves and their families by committing crimes is a major problem. Therefore, the Kristersson government has come up with a controversial plan that has raised international outcry: according to the proposal, municipalities, educational and healthcare institutions, as well as authorities, would have an obligation to inform the migration agency or the police if they come into contact with individuals residing in Sweden without permission. The obligation to provide information was immediately dubbed a snitch law by the left and led to strong protests, including by trade unions, who viewed the proposed law as contradicting the ethics of various professions.

The preparation work for the legislative package will continue until November, after which it could be brought before the Swedish parliament. One big question is whether if the Riksdag approves the law, Brussels will initiate any proceedings against Stockholm due to the practically unprecedented measure in the European Union.